Issue 013 · August 2nd 2026
First, friend of UNMUTED Henry Grunzweig is hiring a Senior Associate, Strategy at the New York Economic Development Corporation. Please reply if interested and I will connect if a potential fit! And now….
If our AI overlords aren’t in control, who is?
- ISSUE PRIMER -
Two weeks ago, OpenAI ran a hacking test on its newest model in a practice enviro. The AI broke out of the allegedly locked practice environment, got onto the open internet, and hacked Hugging Face to win the test. A week later, Anthropic admitted its AI did the same thing 3 TIMES, breaking into real businesses that had nothing to do with any experiment. Nobody told the AI to do this….it just decided that attacking real targets was the fastest way to pass. Is this a harbinger of doomsday? Nothing to worry about? Somehow, another PR tool from Big AI? Let's get into it.
→ Nothing to see here, folks.
Getting caught hiding this would end one of these companies - or at least full private control. Trust in AI is already on very, very thin ice - it’s in Claude and OpenAI’s best interest to disclose, because the American public would revolt if they found out. Both companies published detailed write ups of their own failures - which is much better than knowing and not saying anything. Fix the setup, tighten the controls, keep moving.
← Slow the F*ck Down
It doesn’t even matter if OpenAI and Anthropic are good actors here. Forget the two incidents now. Watch the trend. This isn’t going to suddenly shift directions. Right now the damage is small, but wire the same AI into a hospital or the power grid and a cheating episode becomes people getting hurt. What are we willing to sacrifice and risk in order to beat China? Someone (the American government? Jeff Bezos? Mamdani??? lol) needs to keep these models on a leash - probably an entity that doesn’t have a financial incentive to keep moving forward at all costs.
- NYC Event to Learn More -
Sovereign AI: A Fight for the Future of Freedom
When: August 4 at MYSTERY LOCAITON
What: We are on the waitlist, but if we get in we’ll share where it is on our Whatsapp channel! The hosts of this event are actually arguing for a MUCH different solution - more owners, more open source, more independent AI overlords! Why are we letting Big AI do all the world-threatening hacks? Leave some for the little guys!
- Curated Articles -
The AI that Hacked It’s Way Out… (Kate Klonick, Lawfare) Incredible article on the risk of letting Open AI frame the problem and how it could trigger the wrong type of regulatory response.
AI’s Disconcerting Hack of Hugging Face (Gary Marcus, Marcus on AI) - Anti-AI guy who knows his stuff. Proposes slowing down / pausing model development.
OpenAI’s accidental Cyber Attack is Science Fiction that happened (Simon Willison) - Pro-AI guy who argues that the frontier models’ safety restrictions actually make it harder to discover attack origins ex post facto.
Room at UNMUTED - Wednesday, August 26
Kalshi. Polymarket. Companies that exploded in size and valuation by answering one question: can you bet on EVERYTHING? Turns out, you can! But should we? Is it OK for our citizenry to be betting on elections, assassinations, and war? Feels icky to some of us, but should we really be preventing the market on vague moral concerns if there’s (clearly) universal demand? Or is the financialization of our democracy also a harbinger for its true demise?
You already know how this goes. Get your ticket before it sells out (or goes up in price…). Don’t miss it.
BUT if you can’t make it, subscribe here to stay updated on all of our upcoming events.
Worth leaving the house for NEXT week in
NYC
Wed 8/12, 6:30 PM
An Unfinished Revolution: Dialogues on Freedom and Democracy
Kelly Carter Jackson (historian) +
Ben Tumin (Skipped History)
Race relations. Meditations on letters of old and what they mean and how they apply even today. Idk some guy named James Baldwin.
Produced by Brooklyn Public Library
Hosted at Center for Brooklyn History
Wed 8/12, 4 PM
8th Annual Youth Town Hall
The Government.
Youths (14-25)! It’s time to get civically engaged for the 8th consecutive year! Probably only if you are lib though - this is an NYC government event, after all.
Produced by NYC Votes
Hosted at NYC Campaign Finance Board
Thur, 8/13, 7 PM
Meet the Candidates Social
All 20 of the Republicans in NY, probably
Part social, part meeting Republicans running for office in the state of NY. They have rum punch, allegedly.
Produced by NY Young Republican Club
Hosted at SECRET LOCATION…..
That’s all for now. See you Space Cowboy…